Recap Series 2013 : Apple Store, iTunes and iTunes U

The Apple Store recorded 40 billion downloads, half of which was achieved in the year 2012. With a staggering graph that shows the momentum with which the Apple Store is booming, the credit lies with the 500 million active accounts. Apple also noted a whopping 7 billion dollars paid to the developers and contributors of the store. Just a few months into the year, Apple achieves its historic 50 billionth download on the App Store.

Apps that deserve a special mention would be Temple Run (launched in 2011) which was downloaded over 75 million times over the past year. Game development studios that deserve a place in the spot light would be Backflip Studio and Supercell who brought in a combined revenue of over a $100 million.

iTunes sets off the record for 25 billion songs purchased. The person who downloaded the 25 billionth song received an iTunes gift card of 10,000 euros. (Probably cause he was from Germany). iTunes is the number one music retailer in the world and has made a tremendous impact in the music industry. Providing artists with the platform and reach to share their music regardless of whether they are signed on by a label or not, is nothing short of spectacular and has leveled the playing field in many ways. It also makes it really convenient for the listeners who can download their music (purchased music) to any of their Apple devices, without charge.

With an astounding figure of 15,000 songs being downloaded per minute, iTunes has clearly made it a lot easier to access music legally and connect with their favorite artists.

The year continues to be momentous for Apple as iTunes U reaches 1 billion downloads. For those unaware of iTunes U, it is the worlds largest catalog of free educational content from top schools and prominent libraries online.

With over 250,000 students enrolled, iTunes U has assisted in extending education in top schools, outside the classroom.